Sauk County Gardener: Celebrate Earth Day with these gardening tasks

“The Earth is what we all have in common.” ~Wendel Berry, novelist

Here we are halfway through April and I am way behind on prepping my perennial and vegetable beds for the upcoming growing season. The weather we had the first half of April did not help dry out my gardens, so it’s been difficult to clear out beds without worrying about compacting the soil. I did plant my onions and spinach, as my raised vegetable beds are dry enough to plant those early crops. Next up to plant is lettuce, Swiss chard, peas and radishes.

During the last half of April, plant early potatoes and Jerusalem artichokes if you didn’t plant them last fall. I always seem to miss digging all my Jerusalem artichokes in the fall, so mine come back year after year. Jerusalem artichokes (Helianthus tuberosus) are a variety of sunflower that has a lumpy brown tuber that resembles a ginger root. They’re 4’ - 10’ tall and have 2” - 4” yellow flowers. They can be prepared and eaten much like you would potatoes or parsnips. It’s also time to side dress your asparagus and rhubarb with a light application of compost or well-rotted manure.

You can now plant bare-root roses, but don’t purchase any that have broken dormancy. It’s tempting because you can see they are alive, but those tender leaves won’t handle the cool temps and frost we can expect to have at least until mid-May. If your soil can be worked without compacting it, start planting your gladioli corms every week through June. Planting them this way will ensure a succession of blooms to enjoy throughout the summer. If you left your leaves in your perennial beds to serve as mulch and help overwinter beneficial insects, rake them out before your spring bulbs and early emerging perennials get too tall. Also, divide fall-blooming perennials before vigorous tip growth. I’ll be paying close attention to chrysanthemums and asters when I’m cleaning my beds out to see if they need dividing.

Remove the mulch from your strawberry beds when the leaves start growing. Keep the mulch close in case you need to cover them if they are blooming, and we get a late frost. Plant additional plants as soon as you can work the soil thoroughly. If you’re just starting a bed, pay attention to the type you are purchasing. A June berry will only bear a large crop once a season; an everbearing berry produces fruit one or more times until the first heavy frost. I like having some of both types – the first one so I have enough to make batches of strawberry jams; the everbearing type so my grandson can look for berries all summer long. To learn more about growing strawberries in Wisconsin, visit barron.extension.wisc.edu/files/2021/09/Growing-Strawberries-in-WI-A1597.pdf.

Control weeds in your raspberry beds – straw is an excellent choice. Fertilize bush fruits and ornamental shrubs and prune your spring-blooming shrubs after they have finished flowering.

Friday, April 22, is Earth Day. Earth Day was started in 1970 to bring attention to environmental issues of the day. Today, it is one of the biggest community events in the world and is celebrated by actions that can help protect and restore our earth. As gardeners, we can do our part – simply think: Reduce, reuse,

recycle. Examples can include implement gardening techniques to reduce your use of water, reuse old plastic pots from year to year when starting plants or finding new uses for old items, and recycle your household and yard waste by composting. These are just a few examples of what we can do to help, I hope you can find more and incorporate them into your gardening this year.

Jeannie Manis is a Wisconsin-certified Sauk County Master Gardener volunteer. If you have any gardening questions, please contact the Extension Sauk County by emailing to trripp@wisc.edu or calling the University of Wisconsin Madison Division of Extension Sauk County office at 608-355-3250.